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Better Protection for Buyers and Sellers

Our latest release includes several new features and changes to our Terms of Use designed to help us combat fraudulent activity. Here’s an overview of what’s changing now and what’s coming down the road.

Credit Card Required to Sell or Use Buy It Now

Requiring a valid credit card to list an item allows us to verify the identity of the seller. This creates a significant obstacle for scammers. We are also requiring a credit card for “Buy It Now” to further prevent it being used to lock up listings. Combined with address verification, this new requirement will immediately increase the quality and security of our marketplace.

Automatic Fee Payments

Beginning on November 3rd, 2014 we will automatically charge fees older than 30 days to your primary credit card on the 3rd day of each month. Please note, this only applies to fees incurred after September 24th, 2014, the date this policy was implemented. Any fees incurred prior to September 24, 2014 will need to be paid in full before you will be able to continue using the site.

Avoiding Automatic Fee Payments

You can easily avoid any fees being automatically charged to your credit card by:

1. Paying your bill before it is automatically charged
2. Using Premium listings which do not incur transaction fees
3. Using PayPal as your payment method so that transaction fees are automatically deducted

Simplified Billing

You are no longer required to submit payment for outstanding fees every time you create a new listing. While you can submit payment for oustanding fees at any time by visiting the MyBill page, you now have the option to do nothing and let us take care of it for you with a single transaction each month. We’ll even send you a line item receipt for your records.

Added Convenience

While adding at least one credit card to your account is required to sell or use Buy It Now, you may add more than one and specify which is Primary if you wish. You can then use any of your stored credit cards when you checkout.

To make it a snap we built a button that defaults to your Primary credit card…

while allowing you to easily switch to any other credit card:

Oh Ya, We Don’t Store Your Credit Card Information

In fact, it is never even passed from your web browser to our server. We’re using Stripe for all credit card processing. When you submit your credit card information through a form on our website, it is transmitted directly to Stripe from your web browser over an encrypted (SSL) connection. It is never passed to our server and we don’t store it anywhere within our application or database. Stripe stores your credit card information on their servers and they are serious about security. When it comes time to process a transaction against your credit card we send a charge request to Stripe and they do the rest. That’s it.

What’s Next

While these changes represent a major enhancement of the security of our platform, we are already working on additional measures that will further protect all of our members. Look for these and other changes over the coming weeks and months.

Device Locking

You’ll soon be able to link your account to the specific devices you use to access it. For most of you that’s a desktop or notebook and an iPad. Once you verify your devices, we will block all access to your account from any other device unless you authorize it.

Blocking Anonymous Proxies

While there are legitimate reasons why users need to access Audiogon.com using a VPN or other proxy service, such as connecting from a company network, it is also true that the vast majority of fraudulent activity can be traced to users connecting using technologies that hide their true location, IP address and other information. For this reason we are evaluating various solutions for blocking those services most likely to be used by bad actors.

A New Focus On Security

The changes we’ve already implemented and the ones we are working on now represent a renewed focus on the security and safety of all of our members. As we continue to enhance our platform and develop new services we will remain focused on making sure we are deploying the latest technology and best practices available.